The First Friends of Kenwood Curator Appointed

We are delighted to announce that Dr Emily Burns has been appointed as Curator at Kenwood. She will take up the position of Curator exclusively for Kenwood from 1 October 2026.

Emily has extensive curatorial experience with important collections of paintings. She has worked at the Watts Gallery, the National Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery. She is currently Curator of Collections and Interiors (West London) at English Heritage. She holds particular expertise in British, Dutch and Flemish Old Master painting and historic house collections and display.

Emily has a BA in History of Art from Cambridge, a Masters in Cultural Heritage Studies from UCL, and a PhD from University of Nottingham, where her thesis was on ‘Painting, patronage and collecting in England during the Civil Wars and Interregnum’. She knows Kenwood well, as she was a Visitor Assistant at Kenwood and at Apsley House while studying for her Masters.

We had an exceptional level of interest for the post, and the calibre of applicants was extremely high. The Friends of Kenwood were very closely involved in the interview process and sat on the interview panel.

We believe that the role of a site-based, dedicated Curator for Kenwood is vital for a collection of such calibre, and we have committed to English Heritage that we will fund the role for five years. Our fund-raising must continue, but we are delighted that we have been able to succeed in our ambition of creating the first Friends of Kenwood Curator, the first position of its type that English Heritage has ever agreed to.

We are extremely grateful to the Pears Foundation for their significant support, and also to The Aldama Foundation, The Rubin Foundation, Sally Cowan, Jennye Seres, Mr James and Lady Emma Barnard, Stephanie and John Cooper, Angela Cox, Jacqueline and Jonathan Gestetner, Carol and John Owens, Karen Smith and many of our members, who have contributed to our fund-raising efforts.

August 2026